New Amazon Policy, New Strategy, “New” ebook

I’ve got a lot of stuff “cooking” that I’m excited to share with you all in future posts. I’ve also been trying out a lot of new strategies and have been doing a lot of testing of new ideas. I’ll be sharing my findings when I have enough data to show what works and what doesn’t! Today though, I’d like to talk about a couple of major changes that my impact you and your business.

As you may be aware, today (November 17th) is the day when Amazon fully implements their new policy for DVD and media sellers. The restriction was put in place previously for new sellers, but today is the day that established sellers will be restricted from selling DVDs and Blu rays with an MSRP of $25 or higher (unless you were approved). The good news is you can still apply for an exemption from this policy. I covered this extensively in THIS post. This new restriction not only has a potential effect on your business, it also has a effect on the strategy I’ve given you to start a business! It was brought to my attention that brand new sellers are now restricted from selling media all together unless they apply for an exemption and get approval! This means my original step focused on selling media is essentially obsolete unless you can get approved. Getting approved is very possible, but in my opinion, Starting on Amazon by attempting to get into a restricted category is not the ideal way to start your business. As a new seller on Amazon.com, do you want to spend a lot of time seeking approval to sell, or start selling and make some money?! I think the answer is an obvious one!

“NEW” EBOOK

As I’ve mentioned in a few blog posts, I’ve been working on expanding and updating the 6 steps that I’ve provided to my audience for almost a year in my free downloadable report.” I’ve put countless hours and seemingly endless energy into not just updating it, but seriously expanding the material! Several weeks ago, I “completed” the project. It was then that I was informed new sellers could not sell media at all (without approval). This made even the latest version of “step 2″ irrelevant (as I suggested finding titles under $25 MSRP). In fact, this new policy actually made the order of the steps and some of the information contained in them less than relevant. Due to this new information, I’ve decided to completely modify the 6 step process all-together! As a result, I am essentially re-writing 4 of the 6 sections and modifying and expanded on the other 2! I’m not finished yet, but I’m close! In addition to this, however, I will need to modify a lot of my other material as well to stay current with the new format of my suggested steps (which I’ll get to below.) This will be a pretty massive overhaul and will take some time, but it will get done (though I’m learning not to make promises of “release dates” until the content is finished!)

VALUE OF CONTENT:

When I first made my 6 step strategy available for download, I was told by countless people that I “should be charging” for this information. Some even told me the information in the ebook was more valuable to them than expensive paid courses they had purchased. I’ve been privileged to hear from numerous people that they have built a sustainable income stream and often an entire business thanks to the information I provided! I am grateful for this. I personally love helping people and love hearing the success stories. On the other hand, I recognize that writing a blog post takes me a fair bit of time, answering emails every day from people who read this blog can take hours of my day (if you’ve written me an email, you may have seen that it’s hard for me to not provide a detailed response!). Everything I’ve personally offered to this point has been completely 100% free. I believe the content that will be provided in the new version of the ebook is of even greater value than the original! The fact that many of you are already earning steady incomes after reading the free version tells me that there is value there. Due to the countless days weeks and months I’ve put into modifying this new version of the 6 steps, I will be charging a small fee for it, but wait, there is good news- keep reading!

GOOD NEWS FOR CURRENT SUBSCRIBERS:

A lot of you have stuck with me for a while now and I feel like I’ve built a real relationship with many of you! You’ve taken the time to read the first version of the ebook and you’ve invested your time and energy in building a business. It doesn’t seem fair to me that my loyal long-term subscribers should have to pay for information that while valuable, is still an expanded version of what you originally received. For this reason, there will be a short period of time that the revised ebook is available for FREE to current subscribers. If you are already signed up, you’ll have an opportunity to get it free. If you sign up for the first time today, will you get it for free? YES- so long as it’s not released yet by the time you read this! Anyone who signs up to the newsletter between now (November 17th) and the (currently unknown) date that the ebook is released will have a one-time opportunity to get it free- no strings attached! It will be a limited time offer, but I will email all my subscribers about it so everyone who is already subscribed at that time will have this opportunity!

THE “NEW” 6 STEPS

As I mentioned, I’ve modified the 6 steps in the new version of the ebook. The new book will have a new title and a lot of new content! The good news is, if you download the current report, you will still find 95% of it is still completely relevant and helpful. I’ve added a disclaimer to the beginning explaining the forthcoming “new” 6 steps and a suggestion of how to best utilize the current format while I finish up the new version. For those who already own the current book, I wanted to share my “new” steps below which are essentially the same, but modified and expanded. I will share a bit on each below:

Step 1 will go through the basics of starting a legal business, setting up an Amazon account and generating some start up capital. This section is fairly brief, but I will also be offering an additional expanded report available for download with 15 methods of generating quick cash for starting up your business (this was expanded from the original 7 )

Step 2 has some great new information about arbitrage which seems to be a favorite method and money maker for many of you. I include more specifics about what types of products to look for and also cover tricks, tools and apps that will help you! In addition to this, there is an entire added section covering online arbitrage (and expanded content covering offline arbitrage). There is also a bonus section that offers more specifics about sources and ideas of where to look for profitable items also! In the second half of the step, I cover my entire strategy of getting approved for selling media (which is now optional in new version of this 6 step plan). I explain the pros and cons of media and again offer some insights to some sources you may not have considered!

Step 3 goes through the ins and outs of connecting with wholesale suppliers, what types of products to look for, how to follow trends, pick a niche, how to analyze your competition, what kind of profit margin to be looking for and more!

Step 4 (private labeling) has been a very popular step. I probably get more questions about this step than any other. For this reason, I’ve expanded on this a great deal including information on choosing designs, logo designs, picking a brand name, how to hire designers, how to contact suppliers and more! I’ve even added my proven marketing and promotion strategy that has gotten my brand new private labeled products to the top of Amazon’s search engine and have generated a significant portion of my income! Some of this is information I’ve never shared before!

Step 5 covers outsourcing much more in depth than before including what tasks to outsource, how to do it, where to find people to work with, and how to build a team. In addition, I’ve included an entire additional ebook devoted to this topic which includes additional free resources to get you outsourcing quickly and easily!

Step 6 is all about building up the brand you’ve started and expanding your business on and off Amazon! I go into detail about setting up shop on Ebay, and building websites around your brand(s) and products. This includes information about hosting, platforms and content, building out shopping carts on your sites as well as hosted shopping cart options and more! I also talk about how to use multi-channel fulfillment (using the Amazon FBA program to fulfill items that you sell on Ebay, your websites and other marketplaces) to allow a truly hands-off e-commerce experience! The goal in this step is to use the time you’ve saved from outsourcing to source more products, gain brand recognition, start more brands, expand all across the internet, and continue to grow your online empire!

I’m incredibly excited about this ebook! I have not decided on the price yet, but don’t worry- the cost will not be much… and as a reminder- just sign up below and you’ll have an opportunity to get it for free!

If you sign up before the release of the revised version of the ebook, you will get immediate access to the current version of “Build your Slice of the Pie. This version will still be incredibly valuable- just read the intro to get the most out of it! I’ll be in touch when we get close to “release date.” Thanks so much to everybody for your continued support!

UPDATE: Release information and updates will be available on THIS page

Hi Avi,
So glad you found me! Thanks for the kind words! I’m currently signed up with Amazon Kindle exclusively for the next 2 1/2 months. Unfortunately, I am not able to give away the book unless I give it away to everyone. I may run a promo like this down the line, but for now, you can get it for $9.99 (not bad considering it lays out a 6 figure a year business plan). It’s available HERE. Please let me know if you have further questions. Thanks for your interest!

Yes, private labeling products is a part of my business strategy. I currently have 2 brands and a handful of products. Sales are down in this area this month, but still not bad. I’m working boosting them as we speak! If you haven’t yet, be sure to check out my most popular post on this topic HERE

Any advice for finding suppliers on alibaba or other websites who are able to provide small orders? It seems like all the minimum order quantities are like 1000 pieces. I was looking to only start off by ordering products for a maximum of $200 until I get a hang of this business

Do you thinks its a smart idea to private label glass cups and cosmetic make brushes?

Hi Zacharie,
Thanks for writing! Interestingly, I was just adding to the private label section of my ebook yesterday including the exact information you’re asking about (how to order in smaller quantities). I’ll give you a “sneak peak”/overview:

First, yes, start small. If you haven’t yet, please download the current version of my ebook. The steps are logically laid out from lowest risk to highest risk. Start small with buying only 1 or 2 of a particular product at a time (arbitrage – and media if you can get approved). Then move into wholesale working only with supplier who will provide a variety of items (3 of one product, 5 of another, 2 of another, 8 of another etc- this should be what your initial order looks like). Then eventually you’ll find the best sellers and can order in larger quantities (20, 50, 100, 500 etc) then you move into private labeling (this is what sites like Alibaba are great for) where you’ll order 100, 500 or 1000 (or more) of a single product with your brand! There are numerous suppliers that will sell in smaller quantities. On Alibaba, you’re often dealing with factories and trading companies. For many of them, it is not worth their time to do “small runs” (less than 1000 units.) However, for others, they may advertise a minimum of 1000, but once you build a relationship, you can negotiate a lower quantity. I just found a supplier yesterday on Alibaba with a minimum of 200 (with logo printing! Their minimum without logo printing is 20!) Keep searching and you’ll find some winners!

I have not looked into the cosmetic niche heavily, so I can’t say for sure, but after researching, rely heavily on the data (do similar products sell well, do they have an established history, sales rank history, good profit, low competition etc?) Much of this is covered in the current ebook, but will be covered in much more detail in the upcoming ebook. I hope this helps! Good luck!

I signed up for your ebook last month I believe. I am dying for the new one. I have been sputtering along for 3 months with AMZ with very small successes. I just found I am not going to be approved for DVDs and I am getting beat with the “race-to the bottom” with distributors.

1. Do I qualify to get the the new version of ebook?

2. Do you do any coaching?

3. In your opinion, what is a good budget to start with to start importing?

4. In your opinin..are the US “white” label manufactures worth pursing, or would you recommend going overseas.

I’m sorry to hear that you’ve been struggling getting the business going! The “race to the bottom” is a killer for sure! In order to succeed in these situations, it takes a diversity of products (think “wide” not “deep” – in other words, if you can buy 50 products in single quantities, you’ll be better off than buying 50 units of a single product.) The other strategy that has helped me has been maintaining my price just above the others. It takes some patience to wait while others sell out, but it’s often worth it! There are other ideas in the new ebook that are really going to help you, but to answer your questions:

1. Yes, you are subscribed and you will be notified when it’s available for free (and you “qualify” just by being signed up!)

2. I’m very sorry, I don’t offer any coaching right now. The main reason for this is time. I’ve been helping my Dad with his business which is going great. He’s about ready to move into wholesale, so when I get things really going for him, I may consider this. I also have my own family who likes to have my time once in a while too. With this said, it has been a request of several people which I’m so honored by, but I cannot take on anyone at the moment

3. $3000-$10,000 is GREAT! If you have more than this, all the better. You can probably get by with less, but it’s important to be prepared for customs duty, taxes, shipping expenses, broker fees, and other little fees that come up

4. It is definitely worth pursuing U.S. private label/white label manufacturers. The margins will generally be less, but so will the requirements. I currently use a U.S. company as well as some overseas companies for my brands

I just fell into this whole FBA thing last week after a little experience in EBay. When I saw that the rules were changing I was worried that I may have missed the boat, but glad to hear that their may still be a chance for me. Thanks!

Hi Brandon,
Thanks for writing. No worries, there are still wide open opportunities on Amazon! In fact, if you download the current ebook, basically just skip step 2 (if you can get approved great, but if not, the model will still work) and you’ll be golden! A more well-rounded model will be presented in the new version of the book. Thanks again for reaching out!

Glad that you are updating your ebook and I m looking forward to it. I believe charging a fee is the way to go since you spend a lot of time in it and this has to be somehow compensated. As we all know, time is money and time is limited.

@Viv: It is a bit unfair to compare Daniel with every marketing/sales/amazon guru that you find on the internet who make money only by teaching you how to make money online and that’s it. If you spend some time reading all Daniel’s posts you will see only from the comments that his replies are worth even more than the actual posts. Those detailed replies are charged as an “advice” and “tutoring” by many people since they contain exactly the information someone is looking for. Information on the internet cannot be free at all times. Someone is spending (or investing) time helping you out instead of making money in a different way. We underestimate the time people spent with blogs such as Daniel’s to actually give you advice for free.

Hi John,
I appreciate the kind words and encouragement! Thank you for that! I agree that some negative comments like this seem unfair, but I can’t be too hard on Viv (and I hope I wasn’t!) The fact is, a lot of people have been burned. Yes, it feels unfair to be the target of this kind of accusation, but the truth is Viv has only been subscribed for a month, has not reached out via email or commented ever until yesterday. We have no idea if Viv has benefited from the information or even read it or what Viv’s situation is. Obviously there is some frustration and anger there, but as we’ve never corresponded until yesterday (if a comment counts as “correspondence”) I realize the anger and frustration has little to do with me. I hope Viv will stick around and will truly benefit from the vast amount of free information I’m making available and eventually come to see things differently. If not, I can only keep doing what I do. I can’t change everyone’s mind, but I know there are enough of you that are truly benefiting from this stuff that it makes it worth it. Thanks again!

Not much to say other than a *sincere* “thank you”. You have indeed provided quite a bit already in the form of your blog posts and e-book. The new version sounds like a godsend to those of hungry for accurate and quality information about selling on Amazon.

One quick question–for those of us who are already subscribers–how can we be sure we have the current version of the ebook? i.e., is it possible you can send us a broadcast e-mail with the link? If not, is there any other way we can validate? The version of your ebook I have has 32 pages (PDF). But don’t see a date or version on it so just wanted to confirm what I had was the latest…

Hi Daniel
Thanks for the kind words! I realize now that in talking about “version 2″ I added a bit of confusion. “Version 2″ was never released and will not be because it contained obsolete information before I even got a chance to send it out! Upon finishing it I learned of the complete restriction for all new sellers. This was what motivated me to re-do and/or expand on every step. There has actually been only one version released so far, so you have the “latest” but I’ve recently added an intro to the top explaining the new 6 steps. This is what you’re missing:

BEFORE WE BEGIN! IMPORTANT CHANGES TO AMAZON!
On November 17th, 2014, Amazon implemented a new policy to restrict new sellers from selling
DVDs/media without prior approval. I was already working on a brand new version of this ebook
when this change was announced. I was already expanding concepts and adding a lot of new content!
This change, however, caused me to go back to the beginning and change how to entire 6 step process
was laid out! Please note the book you are reading now has helped countless people build real, online
incomes and businesses and will help you too even with the changes to Amazon! Be aware, however, that in the
coming months, I will release a new version of this ebook which will be paid resource. Don’t worry- if
you’re already signed up to my list (which you probably are if you’re reading this book) you will be
given a one-time opportunity to get the book FREE as a way of saying thank you to my long-term
subscribers. However, I wanted to give you a “sneak peak” to my new 6 steps here so you’re aware of
the changes and how they will work. They are essentially the same as the old format, but without such
a high priority on selling DVDs and media. If you can get approved for this category, that is great, but
if not, go ahead and move from step 1 to step 3 and work on getting approval for media as you go!
Good luck with your adventures!
The original 6 Steps:
1. Get start up capital
2. Sell media
3. Arbitrage
4. wholesale products
5. create a brand
6. expand and outsource

Don’t worry, the basic content of the “new” steps are all covered in this ebook (step 5 and 6 are
combined in the final step in this book), but will be covered in much more detail in the new version.
Keep an eye out! Enjoy!

This is your work. You have a right to charge any Price you want. If you ever go broke and was begging on the street for a dollar and viv was walking by? Would he give you a dollar? Life is tough. You could lose everything at any moment. You try to help yourself as much as you can. Make much money as you can. If you go broke you never know if you will ever get help from anyone including family.

I want to say that thanks to you, I got approved to sell Dvds, Cds, and Blue rays on the first try. Also by following your free ebook, I am now receiving checks from Amazon for $3,400.00 dollars after 5 months of FBA selling. I will be happy to pay for the upgraded book. One last note, maybe sometime down the road we could work on a project together. Thanks for everything.

Hi Ed,
Thank you for the encouragement! Your business is doing great! Congratulations! So glad to hear you got approved for CDs and DVDs as well! I appreciate your offer to pay, but the ebook is free for subscribers- in fact, I “stole” a couple of ideas from you (since you gave me permission!) based on how you generated start up capital for your business. Originally I included these in the modified ebook, but I’ve decided instead to put them in the complimentary report which will be free to ebook purchasers as well as subscribers.

If you’re interested in working on something down the road, feel free to get in touch at daniel(at)alittlesliceofthepie(dot)com. I’d love to hear your ideas. Thanks Ed!

The way I see it is that your “i”ll charge a small fee” is just the 1st step to start looking like everyone else on the internet,charging, selling & upselling taking advantage of the ignorance of the mass seeking to get out of poverty & lack. You may say I’ll never do that but I promise you that if you start charging any fee, you’ll soon be driven to start selling more & more.

What I don’t get is that everybody ultimately becomes guru & teacher. I wonder why, even though you are already making a tremendous amount of money from your current activities.

People who claim are making millions a year, yet they can’t help to start selling to the mass…why don’t they focus and further their so rewarding ventures?

As far as I see it and I’m concerned, if I’m making millions/year I don’t believe I’ll waste my time creating courses & start selling to ppl who are seeking info. I’ll rather be thinking about the next multi billion dollar ventures I could get in. If you can make million/year, the next obvious step is to make billions/year not thousands/year.

Hi Viv,
Thanks for your thoughts. I can see you’ve been burned in the past by empty promises and gurus promising you riches. I’m sorry to hear that. Have you downloaded my ebook? Have you tried the strategies out? Did you find it valuable or did you perceive it as “taking advantage of ignorance of those seeking to get out of poverty and lack?”

Unfortunately, by America’s official standards, I was “living below the poverty line” for many years. It took me a long time to figure out the stuff that works. I don’t wish that on anyone and I run this blog and write this material to make it easier on anyone who is looking for a way to be successful. This is why I’ve offered countless hours of free advice, blogs posts, ebooks and even basically coaching people in their business without asking for anything in return. Yes, there is a lot of misinformation out there, but this is the first time I’ve been accused of perpetuating it! Numerous readers have built real business based on the ideas I’ve shared. I see that you just subscribed last month, so we have not yet gotten to know each other yet. I’d suggest sticking around and would ask that you give me a chance rather than rushing to judgement. I think you may be pleasantly surprised and it will hopefully help you see that there are some “good guys” on the internet too.

Did you catch that this ebook will be free for those who have been long-term readers and subscribers? (that includes you) You may not agree that one should get paid for offering value or you may think that everything should always be free, but the fact is this stuff takes a lot of time, energy and effort and I make no apologies for charging for something valuable.

In case you’re still skeptical, I’ll make you a deal- if you download the ebook when it becomes available (remember it will be free for you) and you don’t find it valuable, I will offer you a “refund” of the purchase price I end up charging. In other words, if you don’t find value in it, I’ll actually pay you just for “wasting your time” – no questions asked.

I hear and understand your concern about the endless marketing messages and there are those out there that don’t “practice what they preach” but again, stick around, look at the income reports (including the one I did at the year’s end where I included a video of me logging into my Amazon accounts. This should help build some trust) – I think you’ll see that I’m the real deal.

Finally To be clear, I never claimed to make millions. Have you taken a look at my income reports? They’re not in the millions- not even close. I make a great income for my family and I’m not complaining. I also spend countless hours and energy giving away content and connecting with people and their businesses via this blog and email. It sounds like you have some ideas regarding business strategies and streams. Have you built income streams? If you have, you’ll understand that every income stream matters. One stream may generate tens of thousands of dollars, one may generate a few thousand and one may generate a few hundred. They all work together and are all important. This is at the core of my strategy as well explained in my ebook. If you are unhappy with the free content you’ve received, you are not obligated to continue reading. If you don’t want the free offer for the new ebook, you are not obligated to download it. Please understand I’m not forcing anything on anybody or taking advantage of anyone. I’m just trying to help those who want to learn and after working for over a year on this project for free, I feel it’s fair to charge a small fee. Thanks for your input!

While I feel Viv’s comments were unfair, I take “concerns” seriously. The fact is, if I do end up becoming one of “those marketers” I’m going to lose valuable followers like you and many others who’s trust I’ve gained. I don’t see that happening, but this “warning” is good to take seriously. It’s simply not worth it for a “quick buck.” If you (or anyone) ever feel I stop offering value and it seems I’m just selling junk to make some quick cash, please let me know. If it comes from someone that I’ve build a relationship with and who has followed my work, I will take this extremely seriously!

For the record, I don’t have a “price tag” on the ebook yet, but I’m not talking $997 or anything like that! I’m thinking less than $30 – somewhere between $9.99 and $27.00. We’ll see. The key point is that it will be free for all of you that are already subscribed and have been loyal followers. I think you’re truly going to benefit from it! Thanks again for the comment!